Best Data Science Courses Admissions 2024

Data Science is a field of study that deals with the collection, analysis, and processing of various data or information to extract solutions. Data Science courses can be described as a combination of several scientific activities which include mathematics, graphs, statistics, calculus, algorithms, and computer programs. Candidates who have completed their Class 12 can pursue the courses. 

Data science admissions are done either based on entrance exams or merit basis. Some of the entrance exams include SSU CET, Jain University Entrance Test, AMET CET, CUCET, CUET, JNUEE, NIMSEE, etc. Some of the top Data science institutes include IIT Madras, VIT Vellore, SPJSGM, IISER, AMET University, etc. The data science course fee ranges from INR 50,000 to INR 5,00,000 annually. 

Here we have sketched a detailed study of the Data Science admission process where specializations, entrance exams, admission process, selection procedure, fee structure, etc have been discussed for interested candidates.

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To secure admission into data science courses, interested candidates should be aware of the major highlights of the data science admission process given here.

Admission into data science courses is done based on merit as well as entrance. For admission into data science courses, candidates have to follow certain eligibility criteria that are required for admission into the data science courses. Given below eligibility criteria are generic and can be checked for reference. Candidates are advised to visit the official website of their preferred institute as the EC may change from institute to institute.

Data Science Diploma Eligibility Criteria

Graduation in science or engineering with 50% aggregate in Maths/Statistics/CS/IT as one of the core subjects

Data Science Undergraduate Eligibility Criteria

• Complete higher secondary education (10+2) from a recognized board in the science stream with subjects such as physics, mathematics, and chemistry (PCM), as their core subjects
• Qualify for relevant entrance exams to get admission to the best colleges of your choice
• In general, the minimum age limit should be 17 years 

Data Science Postgraduate Eligibility Criteria

• Candidates should have completed their graduation in science with relevant specializations such as B.Sc. Statistics, B.Sc. Mathematics, B.Sc. Computer Science or any other equivalent degree from a recognized board or university
• Candidates with prior qualifications, specialization, or experience in Mathematics / Statistics are preferred by the majority of universities
• Take part in counseling sessions involving GDPI.

Data Science Postgraduate Diploma Eligibility Criteria

Candidates with a bachelor's degree with at least 50% marks in aggregate or equivalent, preferably in Science or Computer Science from a recognized university, is the minimum qualifying criterion.

The fee structure of data science courses varies depending on various factors. There are certain factors on which the data science course fee depends on. It may vary from college to college due to the nature of the candidate’s learning path, as there are different structures for a traditional college degree or a Diploma and certification course. The nature of the institute play s huge role in the determination of the data science course fees as there lies a huge bridge between the course fees of a private college and a government-aided institute. 

The cost of a BSc in Data Science varies from INR 3,00,000 to INR 6,00,000, depending on the location and reputation of the college. The average cost of a master's degree in data science is between INR 20,000 and INR 4,00,000. Depending on the institution, however, the course tuition can go up to INR 20,00,000.

Data Science Course Fee in India

The table below highlights the course fee of some of the top data science colleges in India.

Data Science specialization concentrates on a particular subject or skill within the field of study that concerns extracting significant insights from a variety of data. By deciding to specialize in a distinctive area of study within their field, data scientists can improve their understanding and better address essential business needs. They may decide to specialize in a particular type of data, such as big data, or in a specific programming language.

Candidates can check the top data science specializations that are in demand and have high scope in the field. 

To get admission into well reputed institutes, candidates should appear for certain entrance exams on which the data science admission will depend. 

Data Science Admission Entrance Exams at Undergraduate Level

Some of the popular data science entrance exams at UG levels have been listed in the following headers as given below. These entrance exams are a medium to get data science admission.

SSU CET

Sri Sai University Common Entrance Test entrance exam or SSU CET is conducted by Sri Sri University.

Jain University Entrance Test

JUET common entrance exam is conducted by Jain University, Bangalore to admit candidates who are interested in pursuing a bachelor’s degree in data science.

AMET CET

Academy of Maritime Education and Training Common Entrance Test or AMET CET is a common entrance exam conducted by the Academy of Maritime Education and Training University.

Data Science Admission Entrance Exams at Postgraduate Level

The following headers will highlight the entrance exams that help in data science admission at PG levels. Some of these entrance exams include CUET, CUCET, JNUEE, NIMSEE, etc. 

CUET

Christ University Entrance Test or CUET entrance exam is conducted by Christ University. 

CUCET

CUCET is an entrance test for admission to various courses offered by the various central universities of the country.

NIMSEE

NIMSEE is a national level entrance exam and is conducted offline. This exam is conducted by the NIMS University every year to grant admission.

JNUEE

JNUEE entrance exam is conducted by the Jawaharlal Nehru University.

Data Science Entrance Exams Schedule

Data Science Entrance Exams Syllabus

Candidates who want to get admission into data science courses are selected on the basis of their merit i.e. the marks obtained by them in their class 10+2 or equivalent. Candidates should note that the ones who are willing to pursue the data science course will have to score at least 50% in the last qualifying exam with a subject combination of Physics, Mathematics, and Chemistry (PCM), as their core subjects. Moreover, the basic selection criteria are always checked if the candidate is domiciled in India or not and has attained at least 17 years of age. 

When candidates are selected on the basis of their scores in their entrance examinations, the cut off marks in the entrance examination for the respective year will be taken into consideration. 

Candidates who want to take admission to data science will have to follow the following pointers to know the data science admission process.

• Visit the official website of the respective college to commence with the Data science admission application 
• Check the eligibility criteria prior to applying for the institute. This will ensure that they are not wasting time on the wrong institute.
• The data science admission application form for the data science are available to candidates through the online mode
• Fill out the data science admission application form through whichever mode they prefer and provide the required lawful documents for the same as required
• After the submission of the data science application form, sit for entrance exams 
• Candidates who are able to qualify the entrance exam are called for a final interview before the final seat allotment.
• After the counselling session, candidates can complete all the admission formalities as prescribed by the institution

The documents required for admission into data science are dependent on the entrance exam that the candidates wish to take. 

Documents Required for Diploma Data Science Admission

Candidates who wish to take admission to a diploma data science degree can refer to the following pointers for the documents that will be required for the data science admission. 

1. Passport size photograph (JPG / JPEG format) - 50 to 150 KB 
2. Signature (JPEG / JPG format) - 4 to 150 KB file size.
3.  Photo ID Card Scan - Aadhar Card / PAN Card / Passport / Voter ID / Driving License / 12th Admit card with photo / other Government ID with photo (JPEG / JPG / PDF format) - 50 KB to 2 MB file size.
4. Category Certificate - only for applicants who select SC / ST / OBC-NCL / EWS (JPEG / JPG / PDF format) - 50 KB to 2 MB file size.
5. PwD Certificate - Only for candidates with 40% or more disability (JPEG / JPG / PDF format) - 50 KB to 2 MB file size.

Documents Required for UG Data Science Admission

Candidates who wish to take admission to an undergraduate data science degree can refer to the following pointers for the documents that will be required for the data science admission. 

• Marksheet of Class 10 and 12
• Certificate of Class 10 and 12
• Category certificate (If claiming reservation)
• DD of fees (If paying fees through DD)
• Payment Slip (If fees are paid by online mode)

Documents Required for PG Data Science Admission

Following are the documents required for data science admission for PG programs.

• Scanned images of photographs and signatures
• Category certificates (If belonging to reserved category)
• Debit card/Internet banking details for payment of registration fee 
• Photo Identity proof such as Aadhaar, Bank passbook, Ration card copy, etc

Candidates who are willing to take data science admission from the top institutes in India, can refer to the following table. In the following table, the top data science colleges along with the NIRF ranking based on 2023 have been listed.